Resources to Address the Opioid Epidemic

The following is a collection of resources from the AAP related to the prevention, intervention and treatment of opioid use disorder in adolescents and young adults.

Policy Statements and Clinical Reports

• Clinical Report: Pain Assessment and Treatment in Children With Significant Impairment of the Central Nervous System
• Clinical Report: Mind-Body Therapies in Children and Youth
• Clinical Report: Pediatric Integrative Medicine 
• Policy Statement: Substance Use Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment
• Clinical Report: Substance Use Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment
• Clinical Report: Codeine: Time to Say "No"
• Clinical Report: Testing for Drugs of Abuse in Children and Adolescents
• Policy Statement: Medication-Assisted Treatment of Adolescents with Opioid Use Disorders
• Policy Statement: A Public Health Response to Opioid Use in Pregnancy
• Clinical Report: Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome
• Clinical Report: Families Affected by Parental Substance Use

Physician Education

Recovery-Friendly Care for Families Affected by Opioid Use Disorder
This online course aims to support community pediatricians and their teams in implementing recovery-friendly approaches and environments within the patient- and family-centered medical home framework.

Training to Treat Opioid Use Disorder in Adolescents
Online and in-person training is available at no cost for pediatricians interested in prescribing buprenorphine, a partial opioid agonist, to treat opioid use disorder in general medical settings. There are several options for training.

Providers’ Clinical Support System
The AAP is among 23 partner organizations that make up the PCSS coalition. Access a variety of education for physicians and nonphysician clinicians developed for prevention and treatment of opioid use disorder.

Campaigns and Programs

Maternal-Infant Health and Opioid Use Program
Funded by the CDC, this AAP project aims to improve the quality of care of both infants exposed prenatally to opioids, and pregnant and parenting people with opioid use disorder.

Fact Sheets and Posters

Poster on Safe Storage and Disposal of Medications
Hang this poster in the pediatric office for families to see; available in both English and Spanish. It is designed specifically so that local resources can be written into the empty white space. The poster was disseminated at the 2017 National Conference and Exhibition, discussed in an October 2017 AAP News article.

American Medical Association (AMA) Substance Use and Pain Care Task Force
The AAP has been a member and active participant in the AMA's Substance Use and Pain Care Task Force (formerly the Opioid Task Force and the Pain Care Task Force). The Task Force and its previous rendition have produced the following fact sheets:

• 2021 Substance Use and Pain Care Task Force Recommendations
• 2015 Recommendations for Physicians
• 2019 Recommendations for Policymakers
• Thinking of Prescribing an Opioid? Did You Check Your State Prescription Drug Monitoring Program?
• Help Save Lives: Co-Prescribe Naloxone to Patients at Risk of Overdose
• Promote Safe Storage and Disposal of Opioids and all Medications

Timeline of the Opioid Epidemic in America
A brief history of the events leading to the opioid epidemic in America.

Substance Use During Pregnancy and Plans of Safe Care (POSC): Implications for Pediatricians, Mothers, and Infants
Answers to questions asked by pediatricians about the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act provisions around POSC.

Partner with Mothers to Seek and Support Recovery Post Prenatal Opioid Exposure
Access the infographic to learn about the pediatricians’ role in engaging mothers with OUD into treatment and recovery.

Podcasts

The Opioid Epidemic: Compassionate Treatment for Patients with Substance Use Disorders – Episode 165
In this episode Eri Solomon, a harm reduction advocate in recovery for substance use disorder, talks about why pediatricians should use empathy and compassion when treating patients who use substances. Scott Hadland, MD, MPH, MS, FAAP, also joins hosts David Hill, MD, FAAP, and Joanna Parga-Belinkie, MD, FAAP, with tips for counseling teens about fentanyl and the importance of naloxone.

Other Resources

Practice-based Guidelines: Buprenorphine in the Age of Fentantyl
The purpose of this guide is to provide practical clinical practice-based guidance, based on available research combined with emerging clinical experience, on the use of buprenorphine in the treatment of individuals using fentanyl and other highly potent synthetic opioids. 

AAP Public Service Announcement on Medication
In this public service announcement from the AAP, Dr Shelly Flais explains how to protect children by safely storing medicine at home. Physicians can share the PSA on practice websites or social media by using this code: 

<iframe width="854" height="480" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bUal9CbiKts" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe> 

Recommendations to the Indian Health Service on Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome
Indian Health Service units can access recommendations for screening, diagnosis, and treatment of mothers and infants affected by prenatal opioid exposure.